'Z9z- 


MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER 
Yokohama,  Japan 


JVlemorial 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2018  with  funding  from 
Columbia  University  Libraries 


https://archive.org/details/memorialmissjennOOunse 


A  Memorial 


MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER 

Principal  of  Ferris  Seminary, 
Yokohama,  Japan,  who  lost 
her  life  in  the  earthquake, 
September  1,  1923. 


WOMAN’S  BOARD  OF  FOREIGN  MISSIONS 
Reformed  Church  in  America 


25  East  22nd  Street 


New  York 


Miss  Kuyper’s  last  words  to  the  Graduating  Class 
of  Ferris  Seminary ,  Commencement,  1923: 

“I  bid  you  Godspeed  upon  the  voyage  of  life, 
desiring  for  each  one  of  you  this  one  thing — life — ■ 
full,  joyous  and  strong,  found  through  losing  it  in 
service  to  others.” 


Faithful  unto  Death 


MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER 

£|mISS  KUYPER  was  born  and  brought  up  in  Pella,  Iowa. 

She  graduated  from  Central  College,  Pella,  and  received  a 
degree  from  the  University  of  Chicago.  After  teaching  in  Pella 
schools  and  also  in  Central  College  she  became  Lady  Principal  of 
Rochester  Academy  in  Wisconsin,  where  she  taught  Latin  and 
Greek.  It  was  while  teaching  in  Rochester  that  the  gradual  desire 
to  engage  in  missionary  work  became  definite.  She  felt  that 
those  who  had  had  the  opportunity  to  receive  Christian  education 
and  training  and  had  no  one  depending  on  them  for  support 
should  feel  responsible  for  the  work  of  Foreign  Missions. 
Although  leaving  home  and  dear  ones  was  hard,  she  never  felt 
that  she  was  making  a  sacrifice. 

Arriving  on  the  field,  in  addition  to  language  study,  Miss 
Kuyper  had  the  oversight  of  the  evangelistic  work  engaged  in 
by  the  Ferris  Seminary  students  in  the  neighborhood  Sunday 
Schools.  After  passing  the  language  examinations  she  added  to 
her  regular  classroom  work  weekly  visits  to  the  homes  of  the 
pupils.  The  work  of  the  New  Testament  League  was  largely  the 
result  of  her  influence. 

After  a  term  at  Ferris  Seminary,  upon  her  return  from  fur¬ 
lough,  she  was  at  Kagoshima  for  a  brief  period  in  charge  of  the 
evangelistic  work  among  the  women  and  the  High  School  Girls 
among  whom  she  organized  a  Y.  W.  C.  A.  The  monthly  meeting 
in  the  dormitory  of  the  weaving  factory,  and  a  weekly  meeting 
for  nurses  in  the  Government  hospital,  were  among  her  activities. 
From  this  work  in  1922  Miss  Kuyper  was  called  by  the  Mission 
to  the  Principalship  of  Ferris  Seminary  and  became  also  a 
Trustee  of  the  Woman’s  Union  Christian  College  in  Tokyo. 

[3] 


'T’rihiifp'i  ven  e  Memorial  Service  of  the  Boards  of 

J.  riouzes  ]?oreign  Missions,  Reformed  Church  in  America,  in 

the  Marble  Collegiate  Church,  New  York,  November  13,  1923. 


Mrs.  DeWitt  Knox, 

President  of  the  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 

In  1917  I  had  the  privilege  of  visiting  Ferris  Seminary  for  the 
second  time.  The  Seminary  was  then  in  charge  of  Miss  Kuyper, 
owing  to  the  furlough  of  Dr.  Booth.  So  great  was  the  impression 
of  the  poise  and  lovely  spirit  of  the  leader  that  when  the  time 
came  for  Dr.  Booth’s  successor  to  be  chosen,  it  seemed  to  me,  as 
well  as  to  other  members  of  the  Board  when  asked,  that  no  one 
could  be  better  fitted  for  that  position.  She  was  also  a  delightful 
hostess,  full  of  humor  and  courtesy,  but  nothing  dimmed  the 
spiritual  force  of  her  sturdy  character. 


Rev.  William  I.  Chamberlain,  Ph.D., 

Corresponding  Secretary ,  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 

A  good  many  years  ago  a  Scotch  Professor,  having  a  deep 
insight  into  life  and  its  objectives,  visited  this  country  in  succes¬ 
sive  years  and  much  impressed  that  generation  of  university 
students.  The  address  by  which  he  was  perhaps  best  remembered 
was  entitled,  “The  Greatest  Thing  in  the  World,”  which  in  his 
judgment  was  “Love.”  But  is  this  the  greatest  thing  in  the  world? 

The  greatest  thing  in  the  world  is  personality.  Love  is  but  a 
part  of  it,  supplementing  and  crowning  its  other  parts.  We  may 
not  be  able  to  define  personality,  but  we  know  that  it  includes 
beauty  and  majesty  of  physique,  vigor  and  courage  of  spirit, 
keenness  of  mind,  all  the  subtle  graces  of  mind  and  heart,  high 
spiritual  vision,  deep  insight,  purity,  dignity  and  serene  poise  of 
spirit.  All  these  combine  to  make  Avhat  wTe  call  personality. 


[4] 


TRIBUTES — Continued. 

It  is  these  qualities  of  mind  and  heart  and  spirit  that  we  think 

of  this  afternoon  as  we  meet  to  commemorate  the  passing  of  a 

personality  from  an  earthly  to  a  heavenly  environment.  I  came 
only  this  morning  upon  some  of  the  letters  which  Miss  Kuyper 
wrote  to  the  Woman’s  Board  at  the  time  when  she  entered  into 
correspondence  with  a  view  to  becoming  a  foreign  missionary. 
One  or  two  of  these  letters  are  very  self -revealing.  Let  me  quote 
them  here: 

“Rochester,  Wis.,  October  5,  1905. 
“Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions: 

“In  answer  to  the  call  that  came  to  the  young  women  of 

the  Church  through  the  Christian  Intelligencer  of  a  week 

ago  regarding  the  need  in  the  Amoy  region,  China,  of  more 
workers,  I  would  like  to  enter  into  correspondence  with  you 
regarding  the  work,  the  requirements  on  part  of  applicant;  in 
short,  all  I  should  know  with  a  view  to  offering  my  services 
to  the  Board.  Personally  I  am  ready  to  offer  myself  as  such 
applicant  unconditionally ,  but  cannot  do  so  until  my  family 
are  fully  reconciled  to  it — which  I  trust  will  be  soon.  I  will 
defer  giving  you  any  facts  regarding  myself  until  I  hear 
from  you  and  learn  what  information  is  desired. 

“Very  sincerely  yours, 

“Jennie  M.  Kuyper.” 

Following  upon  her  appointment,  she  labored  quietly  but  faith¬ 
fully  and  effectively  in  Japan  for  six  years,  for  the  most  part  in 
connection  with  Ferris  Seminary,  when  she  was  advised  to  return 
to  this  country  because  of  the  discovery  by  the  physicians  of  the 
germs  of  a  threatening  disease.  Upon  her  return  to  America,  she 
quietly  withdrew  to  a  climate  favorable  to  overcoming  this  disease 
and  later  applied  to  the  Woman’s  Board  for  permission  to  return 

[5] 


TRIBUTES — Continued. 


to  her  work  in  Japan.  Her  recovery  not  then  being  considered 
complete,  her  application  at  that  time  was  not  accepted,  whereupon 
she  wrote  another  of  those  self -revealing  letters: 

“October  8,  1912. 

“Thank  you  for  the  kind  words  in  which  the  hard  message 
was  sent.  I  could  not  write  before  for  I  could  not  face  the 
bitter  disappointment. 

“But  I  know  our  Father  can  make  no  mistakes  and  to  His 
leading  I  have  committed  the  further  direction  of  my  life. 
The  last  hymn  our  girls  sang  for  me  just  before  leaving  the 
school  was  ‘He  Leadeth  Me.’  Had  I  known  then  that  His 
leading  was  not  to  bring  me  back  to  them  the  parting  would 
have  been  unbearably  hard.” 

A  little  later  she  again  renewed  her  application  and  was  again 
asked  to  continue  longer  in  this  country,  whereupon  she  wrote  as 
follows  to  the  Woman’s  Board: 

“The  keenest  disappointment  my  life  has  ever  known  came 
to  me  through  your  decision  to  not  send  me  back  to  Japan. 
While  I  realize  that  the  interests  of  the  work  and  considera¬ 
tion  for  my  health  made  no  other  decision  possible  it  none  the 
less  meant  to  me  that  which  I  cannot  yet  face  very  bravely 
and  calmly — the  giving  up  of  a  work  in  which  I  thought  God 
could  use  me  and  to  which  I  so  longed  to  give  my  whole  life.” 

These  letters  surely  reveal  those  fine  qualities  of  courage  and 
resignation  which  were  so  supremely  exhibited  on  the  first  day  of 
September  last  when  she  was  called  suddenly  to  lay  down  her  life. 

It  is  perhaps  proper  that  we  should  remind  ourselves  of  the 
tragic  circumstances  of  her  death  in  order  that  we  may  draw  the 

[6] 


T  RIBUTES — Continued. 


lessons  from  her  life.  On  the  day  preceding  the  earthquake,  in 
response  to  her  own  sense  of  duty,  she  returned  to  Yokohama  for 
the  purpose  of  making  preparation  for  the  opening  of  Ferris 
Seminary,  of  which  she  had  recently  become  the  Principal.  At 
the  hour  of  high  noon  on  the  fatal  first  of  September  she  was 
in  her  study.  The  Japanese  clerk  of  the  school  was  in  the  adjoin¬ 
ing  verandah.  Without  warning  the  terrific  calamity  came  upon 
the  city.  The  building  being  thoroughly  shaken,  the  clerk  made 
his  escape,  but  Miss  Kuyper  being  in  an  inner  room  was  not 
able  to  leave  the  building  before  it  collapsed.  The  clerk  returned 
shortly  after  the  building  had  collapsed  and  called  down  from  the 
top  of  the  ruins  and  received  an  answer  from  Miss  Kuyper.  He 
could  not  see  her  in  the  darkness  below  but  she  could  see  him  in 
the  light  above.  She  said  that  she  was  held  fast  by  her  arms 
but  her  body  was  free.  The  faithful  Japanese  friend  endeavored 
to  get  assistance  for  the  purpose  of  relieving  Miss  Kuyper,  but 
was  unsuccessful.  Finally  an  hour  had  passed;  the  consuming 
fire  was  approaching;  Miss  Kuyper  realized  it  and  finally  said 
to  the  faithful  friend  who  was  trying  in  vain  to  secure  her  release, 
that  he  must  now  leave  her  to  secure  the  safety  of  himself  and 
his  family  and  said  to  him  as  a  parting  message,  “God’s  will  be 
done.  Give  my  love  to  my  friends.” 

A  few  days  later  a  committee  of  the  Mission  searched  the  ruins 
and  found  two  human  bones.  These  were  later  reverently  buried 
in  the  cemetery  at  Nagasaki. 

An  interpretation  of  Psalm  XCI  has  recently  been  given  me  by 
a  member  of  the  Woman’s  Board  in  connection  with  the  tragic 
death  of  Miss  Kuyper,  which  it  seems  to  me  appropriate  to  pass 
on  to  those  who  are  here  assembled  to  commemorate  the  life  and 
death  of  a  noble  personality.  The  great  assurance  of  the  opening 
verses  of  this  Psalm  is  not  so  much  of  safety  from  destruction  as 
of  freedom  from  fear  in  the  hour  of  great  danger.  The  words 

[7] 


TRIBUTES — Continued. 


of  this  Psalm  are  so  tender  and  yet  so  strong  that  they  seem 
peculiarly  appropriate  to  the  life  of  our  friend : 

He  that  dwelleth  in  the  secret  place  of  the  Most  High 
shall  abide  under  the  shadow  of  the  Almighty. 

I  will  say  of  the  Lord  He  is  my  fortress:  my  God; 
in  Him  will  I  trust. 

Surely  He  shall  deliver  thee  from  the  snare  of  the 
fowler,  and  from  the  noisome  pestilence. 

He  shall  cover  thee  with  His  feathers,  and  under  His 
wings  shalt  thou  trust;  His  truth  shall  be  thy  shield 
and  buckler. 

Thou  shalt  not  be  afraid  for  the  terror  by  night;  nor 
for  the  arrow  that  flieth  by  day; 

Nor  for  the  pestilence  that  walketh  in  darkness;  nor 
for  the  destruction  that  wasteth  at  noonday. 

Miss  Olivia  H.  Lawrence, 

Editorial  Secretary,  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 

Following  the  growing  custom  of  laying  a  wreath  as  a  loving 
tribute  on  a  monument  or  grave,  today  mine  is  a  tribute  of  friend¬ 
ship,  and  the  wreath  is  one  of  lilies,  pure  in  their  fragrance  and 
fragrant  in  their  purity,  dignified,  radiant;  symbolic  of  the  life 
and  character  of  Jennie  M.  Kuyper.  The  one  reason  that  I  speak 
is  because  I  was  the  first  of  the  Woman’s  Board  to  meet  Miss 
Kuyper.  It  was  in  June,  1905,  when  General  Synod  was  in 
session  at  Asbury  Park  that  I  was  asked  to  meet  her  at  the  rail¬ 
road  station.  By  some  intuitive  instinct  we  mutually  recognized  each 
other.  The  years  that  lie  between  are  of  a  friendship  that  counted. 

The  first  impressions  were  of  sincerity,  strength,  saneness, 
spirituality;  and  the  correspondence  of  years  deepened  the  im¬ 
pression.  Our  lives  touched  tenderly  when  her  health  was  in 
question  regarding  her  return  to  Japan  and  her  submission  then 
to  God’s  will  was  the  same  that  marked  her  entire  life. 

It  was  during  Miss  Kuyper’s  initial  term  of  service  while 
attending  a  conference  in  Pella  that  at  the  close  of  the  morning 
session  a  dear,  elderly  lady  said  to  me  “You  are  Jennie’s  friend, 
I  am  Jennie’s  mother.  Do  come  to  our  house.”  I  went  to  their 
house  in  the  afternoon  and  met  that  consecrated  family. 

[8] 


TRIBUTES— Continued. 


Christian  character  building  was  pre-eminent  in  all  Miss 
Kuyper’s  teaching,  whether  in  educational  or  evangelistic  work. 

The  many  references  to  her  in  the  Missionary  magazines  and 
letters  are  of  her  rare  character  and  the  irreparable  loss  to  the 
work  in  Japan;  these  are  words  we  cherish. 

On  that  last  day  a  former  student,  now  teaching  in  a  Govern¬ 
ment  school,  where  there  is  no  Christian  sympathy,  called  to  see 
Miss  Kuyper.  Before  leaving  they  had  a  Bible  talk  and  prayer 
and  the  final  message  of  the  beloved  teacher  was — ‘‘Remember 
wherever  you  are  and  whatever  you  are  doing,  God  is  always 
with  you.”  That  was  at  11 :30  o’clock  on  the  morning  of  Septem¬ 
ber  1st.  Little  did  that  unshakably  spiritual  soul  realize  what 
the  next  half  hour  was  to  bring,  but  her  faith  held.  As  she  climbed 
the  steep  ascent  of  heaven  through  peril,  toil  and  pain  her  fare- 
v/ell  words  were:  “It  is  evidently  God’s  will;  it  is  all  right.  Give 
my  love  to  everyone.”  Her  submission  to  God’s  will,  the  sacrifice 
of  her  life,  will  ever  be  held  in  tender,  sacred  memory.  She  fought 
with  radiant  valor  and  was  faith  full  unto  death. 

Rev.  Eugene  S.  Booth,  D.D., 

Principal  Emeritus  of  Ferris  Seminary 

I  esteem  it  a  privilege  to  bear  my  testimony  to  the  life  work 
and  character  of  Jennie  M.  Kuyper,  who  for  fourteen  years  of  her 
eighteen  years’  missionary  experience,  was  a  member  of  my 
household,  a  member  of  the  staff  of  Ferris  Seminary  and  a  most 
genial,  efficient,  consecrated  helper,  always  wise  in  counsel,  always 
with  the  supreme  end  in  view — the  ideal  for  which  Christian 
Missions  stand,  Christian  life.  .  .  .  Instinctively,  we  are  so 

built  as  to  sorrow.  Over  physical  pain  of  others  we  do  not  mourn, 
but  we  are  sorry  that  somehow  or  other  in  the  inscrutable  provi¬ 
dence  of  Almighty  God,  Jennie  M.  Kuyper  was  called  to  this 
supreme  suffering,  and  I  note  that  1,200  or  more  alumnae  in  Japan 

[9] 


TRIBUTES — Continued. 


have  sorrowed  for  that  experience.  The  members  of  the  Japanese 
staff,  who,  praise  God,  all  wTere  saved,  have  sorrowed  for  that  ex¬ 
perience.  The  Japanese  Mission  have  sorrowed  for  that  experience, 
the  members  of  the  Woman’s  Board  and  Men’s  Board  of  the 
Reformed  Church  have  sorrowed  for  that  experience  and  every 
woman  and  every  man  that  has  heard  the  name  of  Jennie  M. 
Kuyper  throughout  the  Reformed  Church  not  only,  but  throughout 
Christendom,  have  sorrowed  for  that  experience.  We  may  mourn 
for  those  temporal  things  that  have  passed;  we  mourn  that  Ferris 
Seminary,  the  product  of  so  much  consecration,  so  much  prayer, 
so  much  self-denial,  so  much  sacrifice,  is  but  ashes.  So  far  as  the 
tangible  things  are  concerned  and  because  of  your  prayers  and 
your  devotion,  I  can  say  in  this  presence,  it  was  one  of  the  best 
equipped,  best  manned  institutions  in  the  Orient  and  it  had  the 
promise  of  a  magnificent  future  under  the  leadership  of  Jennie  M. 
Kuyper.  One  year  ago  I  left  Yokohama  feeling  that  this  institu¬ 
tion,  so  precious  to  me,  into  which  I  had  woven  the  best  of  my 
life,  was  in  the  best  possible  hands. 

A  picture  comes  before  me  today  as  we  stood  upon  the  deck  of 
our  ship :  Miss  Kuyper  and  her  staff,  a  multitude  of  the  graduates 
from  Tokyo  and  nearby  places,  and  a  chosen  number  from  each 
of  the  six  classes  permitted  to  stand  upon  the  wharf  to  say  goodbye, 
singing  “God  be  with  you  ’till  we  meet  again.”  Miss  Kuyper  was 
not  a  singer  but  she  had  a  wonderful  appreciation  of  good  singing 
and  her  countenance  wreathed  in  smiles  as  that  prayer  went  up  in 
song.  That  picture  is  vivid  before  me  and  a  year,  less  than  a  year, 
after  that  date,  word  came  speeding  through  the  air,  without  wire, 
with  just  ether  of  the  air,  telling  us  that  in  six  short  minutes  an 
area  of  more  than  300  square  miles  had  been  shaken  down  and 
reduced  to  ashes  by  fire. 

We  sorrow  for  the  suffering  that  apparently  is  necessary  for  the 
development  of  that  character  which  enables  us  to  live  on  with  God. 

[10] 


T  RIB  U  T ES — Continued. 


At  the  Memorial  Service,  First  Church, 

Pella,  Iowa,  September  23,  1923. 

Miss  Eliza  P.  Cobb, 

Corresponding  Secretary,  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 

We  are  met  this  afternoon  to  memorialize  not  a  tragedy,  but  a 
triumph,  not  a  great  catastrophe,  but  a  great  victory.  God  has 
said  “Be  thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give  thee  a  crown 
of  life,”  and  this  is  Jennie  Kuyper’ s  Coronation  Day. 

When  the  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  commissions  a 
new  missionary,  there  is  read  as  a  part  of  the  service  the  91st 
Psalm  (vs.  1,  4,  5,  11,  12).  This  promise  God  has  fulfilled  to 
Jennie  Kuyper.  Dwelling  in  the  secret  place  of  the  Most  High 
she  was  not  afraid  “for  the  destruction  that  wasted  at  noonday” 
and  surely  the  angels  of  God  bore  her  up  in  their  hands  to  Him 
whom  she  had  made  her  habitation. 

Mrs.  Van  Peursem  of  Arabia  has  spoken  of  a  visit  she  paid 
to  Miss  Kuyper  in  Japan.  When  she  had  looked  about  at  Ferris 
Seminary  with  its  fine  equipment,  its  bright-faced  girls  and  con¬ 
trasted  it  with  the  humble  beginnings  in  Arabia,  she  said  to  Miss 
Kuyper  “Oh  how  I  envy  you  your  success.”  Miss  Kuyper  replied, 
with  that  humility  so  characteristic  of  her,  “It  is  not  success  that 
counts,  but  faithfulness.  When  we  get  to  the  end  of  life  and 
meet  the  Master,  He  will  not  ask  ‘Have  you  been  successful?’ 
but,  ‘Have  you  been  faithful  V  ”  Faithfulness  was  the  keynote  of 
Miss  Kuyper’s  life. 


[ii] 


EXCERPTS  FROM  LETTERS 


Mrs.  Hubert  Kuyper 

It  is  inevitable  that  the  girls  will  go  back  to  the  school  they 
so  love,  and  it  may  be  that  her  going  and  her  message  may  have 
a  wider  influence  than  years  of  work,  for  hearts  are  very  tender 
just  now  as  all  are  suffering  such  great  losses  of  every  kind.  Miss 
Kuyper’s  remains  are  to  be  interred  at  Nagasaki,  beside  those  of 
Mr.  Anthony  Walvoord,  the  Principal  of  Steele  Academy. 

Miss  Sara  M.  Couch 

Miss  Kuyper’s  last  words  have  made  a  great  impression  on  the 
teachers  and  pupils  not  only,  but  on  many  others.  She  was  a 
wonderful  missionary,  her  place  will  not  be  filled,  but  God  knows 
best. 

Mrs.  D.  C.  Ruigh 

The  serene,  grand  personality  of  Miss  Kuyper  seems  enshrined 
in  our  hearts;  something  imperishable  broods  over  that  desolation 
of  ash  and  destruction,  once  Ferris  Seminary.  We  see  her  calm 
and  brave  and  smiling  quietly  sending  on  her  message  to  all  who 
have  come  under  the  benediction  of  her  friendship. 


[12] 


From  Miss  Kuyper’s  Letters 


The  task  of  being  Principal  of  Ferris  looks  too  big  for  me. 
The  fear  of  failing  to  come  up  to  my  ideal  of  what  should  be 
done  by  the  one  in  charge  makes  me  shrink  from  it.  There  are 
so  many  grave  problems,  so  much  to  be  done  that  requires  more 
wisdom,  tact,  patience,  courage  and  self-confidence  than  I  possess. 
I  feel  my  shortcomings  at  every  point. 

I  am  inclined  to  think  the  middle  class  in  Japan,  at  least  the 
young  women  of  that  class,  are  the  most  influential  and  hence 
the  most  desirable  to  win.  Those  of  the  richer  families  lead 
more  secluded  lives,  while  the  middle  class  young  women  are  many 
of  them  going  out  as  teachers  and  filling  business  positions. 

I  want  a  closer  walk  with  God  that  will  give  me  a  deeper 
sense  of  His  guidance  and  direction  in  my  life  and  work,  and  a 
clearer  appreciation  of  the  greatness  of  every  small  opportunity 


MINUTES 


MINUTE  ADOPTED  .BY  THE  JAPAN  MISSION 

of  the 

REFORMED  CHURCH  IN  AMERICA 
Upon  the  Death  of 
MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER 
Yokohama,  September  1,  1923 


IN  MEMORIAM 

“The  Japan  Mission  of  the  Reformed  Church  in  America  has  again 
been  called  upon  to  mourn  the  death  of  one  of  its  members.  In 
the  great  calamity  which  befell  the  cities  of  Tokyo  and  Yokohama 
on  September  1,  1923,  Miss  Jennie  M.  Kuyper  was  called  to  higher 
service.  She  had  returned  from  her  summer  vacation  in  the  hills 
somewhat  early  in  order  that  she  might  prepare  for  the  opening  of 
the  autumn  term  of  school.  She  was  always  most  conscientious  in 
the  discharge  of  her  duties.  Her  early  return  to  her  post  was  but 
an  added  illustration  of  this  characteristic.  Shortly  before  noon  she 
had  been  in  conference  with  one  of  the  graduates  and  had  closed  the 
conference  with  a  season  of  prayer.  The  two  then  went  out  together 
as  far  as  the  gate.  Within  a  few  moments  after  her  return  to  her 
office  the  great  earthquake  came  and  destroyed  the  main  building  of 
the  School  in  a  moment’s  time.  The  shock  was  without  warning  and 
the  building  collapsed  so  suddenly  that  it  was  not  possible  for  her 
to  make  her  escape.  She  was  pinned  in  under  the  heavy  timbers  from 
whence  it  was  impossible  to  rescue  her.  Those  who  talked  with  her 
before  she  died  speak  of  her  faith  and  fortitude  in  the  last  moments 
of  her  life.  This  has  been  an  inspiration  to  her  associates  in  the 
Mission  and  amongst  the  Japanese.  In  the  hour  of  approaching  death 
she  was  as  calm,  serene,  strong  in  her  faith  and  trust  in  the  Lord, 
as  she  had  always  been  in  her  life. 

“The  Lord’s  ways  are  past  finding  out.  We  know  from  His  Word 
and  from  our  own  experiences  that  He  knows  what  is  best,  and  that 
He  makes  no  mistakes.  May  her  immediate  family,  her  friends  in 
the  homeland,  as  well  as  her  associates  in  the  work  here,  learn  to  say : 
‘Thy  will  be  done.’ 

“We  recognized  in  Miss  Kuyper  a  woman  of  rare  ability,  possessed 

[14] 


of  sound  judgment  and  unusual  poise  of  character.  Her  faith  was 
calm  and  assured.  Her  outlook  upon  life  full  of  hope.  A  quiet  joy 
pervaded  all  her  activities  and  relationships. 

“She  looked  upon  her  pupils  as  sacred  trusts,  as  gifts  from  God, 
for  whose  training  and  development  in  the  best  things  of  life  she 
was  responsible.  The  quiet  and  helpful  influence  she  exerted  will 
long  be  felt  in  the  lives  of  all  those  who  came  in  contact  with  her. 
She  won  and  held  a  large  place  in  the  hearts  of  her  pupils  and  of 
all  those  with  whom  she  was  associated  in  the  work  of  the  Kingdom. 

“RESOLVED :  That  the  Mission  express  its  deep  sense  of  the 
loss  it  has  sustained.  Further  that  we  earnestly  pray  that  the  example 
of  faithfulness  and  loyalty  may  be  an  inspiration  to  us  all  in  the  work 
yet  before  us.  That  we  pray  that  the  Lord’s  comforting  grace  be 
abundantly  vouchsafed  to  her  brothers,  sisters,  and  other  relatives  in 
the  homeland. 

“RESOLVED :  That  a  copy  of  these  Resolutions  be  placed  in  our 
Minutes  and  that  a  copy  be  sent  to  the  family.  Also  that  they  be 
published  in  the  Church  papers.” 

L.  J.  Shafer, 

Secretary,  Japan  Mission. 

IN  MEMORIAM 

The  Board  of  Directors  of  Ferris  Seminary  desires  to  express  its 
deep  sense  of  loss  in  the  death  of 

MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER, 

the  Principal,  in  the  earthquake  of  September  1,  1923. 

A  teacher  in  America  before  coming  to  the  mission  field,  a  member 
of  the  faculty  of  Ferris  Seminary  for  several  years,  acting  principal 
during  the  absence  of  Dr.  Booth  in  America,  she  brought  to  the 
principalship  high  and  suitable  qualifications  for  successful  admin¬ 
istrative  work.  Her  one  year  of  work  as  principal  was  marked  by 
such  faithfulness  to  the  school’s  best  interests,  such  tact  and  resource¬ 
fulness  in  meeting  new  and  difficult  problems,  and  such  consecration 
of  all  her  time  and  strength  to  the  School,  that  the  Board  of  Directors 
had  every  confidence  in  her  administration.  She  desired  above  all 
else  that  the  teaching  in  school  should  be  character  building,  and  that 
the  curriculum  and  school  activities  should  be  permeated  with  a 
spiritual  atmosphere  and  directed  toward  a  Christian  purpose. 

But  we  desire  to  pay  tribute  not  only  to  her  success  as  a  principal, 
but  also  to  her  quiet,  sincere  personal  Christian  life.  Her  strength 

[15] 


was  indeed  found  in  “quietness  and  confidence”  and  she  knew  what 
it  meant  to  “wait  upon  the  Lord.”  The  steady  purposefulness  of  her 
life,  crowned  by  the  precious  sacrifice  of  her  death,  is  our  inspiration 
to  carry  on  the  work  she  loved. 

On  behalf  of  the  Board  of  Directors, 

(Signed)  Gertrude  H.  Stegeman, 
Tetsu  Sato, 

Jeane  Noordhoff, 

Committee. 

AN  APPRECIATION 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  held 
November  13,  1923,  the  following  appreciation  of 

MISS  JENNIE  M.  KUYPER 

was  ordered  to  be  placed  permanently  in  its  Minutes  : — 

By  the  death  of  Miss  Jennie  M.  Kuyper,  whose  devotion  to  duty 
made  her  a  victim  of  the  earthquake  and  fire  at  Yokohama  on  Septem¬ 
ber  1,  1923,  the  Woman’s  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  has  lost  one  of 
its  most  able  and  consecrated  missionaries. 

Quiet  and  reserved,  yet  ever  most  sympathetic  and  genial ;  patient, 
thorough  and  inspiring  in  her  scholastic  work ;  seeking  constantly  a 
closer  walk  with  God  for  herself,  and  a  surrender  to  the  claims  of 
Christ  for  her  pupils ;  she  exerted  a  strong  influence  upon  the  whole 
school  throughout  the  years  when  she  was  a  teacher  in  Ferris 
Seminary,  an  influence  which  continued  in  similar  ways  when  she  was 
an  evangelist  at  Kagoshima.  And  when,  distrusting  her  own  ability 
but  obeying  what  she  felt  to  be  the  call  of  God,  she  became  the 
Principal  of  Ferris  Seminary,  though  permitted  to  serve  but  one  brief 
year,  her  far-reaching  plans  for  its  educational  work,  and  her  constant 
emphasis  of  its  Christian  life,  bore  fruit  to  a  noticeable  degree,  and 
promised  to  bear  much  more, — a  promise  which,  alas !  she  was  not 
to  see  realized. 

Her  life  in  many  ways  was  a  triumph  of  faith  in  God,  revealed 
increasingly  as  the  years  went  by,  and  shown  most  clearly  in  the 
supreme  test  of  its  closing  hour.  Deeply  as  we  feel  her  loss,  she 
herself  has  bid  us  say,  “It  is  God’s  will.”  And  from  the  heart  we 
pray  that,  since  the  chariot  of  fire  has  parted  her  from  us,  a  double 
portion  of  her  spirit  may  fall  upon  those  who  have  labored  with  her, 
and  upon  all  who  knew  and  loved  her. 

(Mrs.  Wm.  Bancroft)  Elise  W.  Hill, 
Foreign  Corresponding  Secretary  for  Japan. 

[16] 


Ferris  Seminary,  178  Bluff,  Yokohama 


